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Tuesday, October 30, 2012

How the Jack O'Lantern Saved Christianity

My friends, I don't mind telling you that we find ourselves
in a culture war. The forces of radical atheism again threaten to rob
this great country of the symbols of it's freedom and it's proud Christian
heritage. If these people have their way all traces of Halloween's
Christian roots would be erased and all references to Jesus would be stricken
from Halloween parades, store displays, and the hopeful mouths of trick or
treating Christian children. We must all stand together
against this atheistic tyranny.

One of the stories, atheists don't want you to know is the
story of the Jack O'Lantern. In Ireland, Christians were persecuted
for many centuries. One of the reasons that St. Patrick was celebrated
for driving the snakes from Ireland
is because they used to feed Christian children to the snakes.
Christians were kept poor and not allowed to hold jobs. Their possessions
were simple, but their faith was mighty.

As the Irish traveled along the countryside at autumn
harvest time looking for work picking crops, they were frequently met with
signs that said Christians need not apply. Even a non-Christian who
hired a Christian to pick his crops faced persecution from the Irish King.

The Irish needed a subtle symbol to let others know
that they welcomed Christians and that the light of Jesus shined within
them. They came up with the idea of taking a pumpkin and carving a
smiling face on it. They then placed a candle inside the pumpkin and
placed it in the window.

The Irish named this pumpkin Jack of the Light or the
Americanized version, "Jack O' Lantern". Nowadays,
pumpkins are carved into the most grotesque and hideous shapes imaginable and
the original meaning of the Jack O'Lantern has been lost. This
Halloween if you carve a pumpkin with your children I hope you'll tell them the
story of how the Jack O'Lantern saved Christianity in Ireland--one of
the most Christian nations in the world today.